Mark Harris is a journalist and cultural historian. His most recent book, Mike Nichols: A Life, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award.
game theory
Firing Jeff Probst Isn’t EnoughThe game used to be a contest of social, physical, and strategic skill. Now it’s turning into a show about nothing but itself.
close reads
Is Tom Ripley Gay?The question has challenged every adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s book, including the latest — and best — from Steven Zaillian.
Nerding Out With David FincherThe director talks about the decades-long journey behind Mank, his dense, bitter look at Hollywood history, political power, and the creative act.
The Boys in the Band Play OnThe pioneering gay drama, long dismissed as a relic of self-hatred, is now a Netflix film that remains brilliantly uncomfortable.
close reads
The Mod Squad, Kojak, Real-Life Cops, and MeWhat I relearned (about well-meaning liberalism, race, my late father, and my young gay self) rewatching the TV cop shows of my 1970s youth.
The Absolutist Case for Problematic Pop CultureAs HBO Max temporarily removes Gone With the Wind, we should all cast a skeptical glance at gestures that cost nobody a dime and change nothing.
I Read Woody Allen’s Memoir So You Don’t Have ToFirst off, there are two short passages that will forever change the way I think about him. I cannot unread, unhear, unknow them. I wish I could.
The Matrix Built Our Reality-Denying WorldIt gave all of us — including Alex Jones, flat-earthers, lizard-people conspiracists, even Rachel Maddow — a new way to see (or not see) everything.
The Best Movies You Can’t See (Yet)The 2018 Black List is a look inside the minds of Hollywood’s next great screenwriters. We turned five of their scripts into comics.
hollywood signs
Who Was Green Book For?A particular kind of movie about black and white America may have, at long last, run its course.
